For the month of National Day, watch movies and TV shows that offer a snapshot of Singaporean culture, featuring some of the country’s most enduring and popular entertainers.
Money No Enough
Before Jack Neo became a director, he was a fixture on the Singapore Mandarin comedy sketch show Comedy Nite (搞笑行动), a popular programme that propelled him to fame. When he decided to venture into filmmaking, he parlayed his comic talents into box office clout, scoring a series of commercially successful movies that resonated deeply with local audiences. One of these movies is 1998’s Money No Enough, written by and starring Neo.
Money No Enough was followed up with two standalone sequels: 2008’s Money No Enough 2, and, more than a decade after that movie, 2024’s Money No Enough 3.
It follows three lifelong friends: deliveryman Li Qing Huang (Lee), rideshare driver Liang Da Qiang (Neo), and hawker stall owner Zhang Ming Hui (Thia), all of whom grew up in the same kampung (village) as kids. When Qing Huang faces mounting debts, Da Qiang and Ming Hui agree to lend him money. Qing Huang gets greedy, establishing illegal businesses and refusing to repay his friends even after he prospers. When one of his companies fails, Qing Huang’s family is torn apart, and he must rebuild his relationship with them and with his friends.
The documentary Money No Enough: The Dawn of Singapore Cinema looks back at the creation of the film, its lasting legacy, and how it kickstarted the commercial film industry in Singapore, in which Neo would become a dominant force. Directed by Rickson Tan, the documentary includes interviews with Neo, Mark Lee, Henry Thia, Money No Enough director Tay Teck Lock, and Singaporean filmmakers Eric Khoo and Kelvin Tong.
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Three friends face family and financial problems. Their attempt to support each other falls apart when one friend cheats money from the other two. They must find a solution.
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On 7 May 1998, the movie MONEY NO ENOUGH was released. This programme charts the achievements of the movie.
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Phua Chu Kang: The Movie
Contractor Phua Chu Kang, with his permed hairdo, yellow boots, and signature facial mole, is an iconic and instantly recognisable character. Portrayed and created by Gurmit Singh, Phua Chu Kang first appeared on the sketch show Gurmit’s World before getting two TV series, Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd and the Malaysian spin-off Phua Chu Kang Sdn Bhd. This feature film continues his adventures.
On her way to visit her son Phua Chu Kang and his wife Rosie (Irene Ang) in Kuala Lumpur, Ah Ma (Neo Swee Lin) mysteriously vanishes. Chu Kang and Rosie undertake a desperate search for her, ultimately tracking her down at a retirement home. Lim Lau Pek (Henry Thia), the shady proprietor of the retirement home, has a criminal past, and it turns out the home’s residents have been dying under mysterious circumstances. Chu Kang and his long-time nemesis Frankie Foo (Lim Kay Siu) bid for a job renovating the retirement home so the former can rescue his mother. Chu Kang is caught in a criminal scheme and discovers a shocking secret about his family history.
Phua Chu Kang is back. All comes to a screeching halt when he discovers the real reason behind Ah Ma's strange insistence to help some old folks at the home who are dropping dead one by one.
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Liang Po Po: The Movie
As Phua Chu Kang is to Gurmit Singh, so Liang Po Po is to Jack Neo. The bumbling old lady character originated on the sketch comedy show Comedy Nite and got her own film, 1999’s Liang Po Po: The Movie, which sees her escaping from a retirement home and seeking a new life. She gets robbed by the Lotus Gang and meets Ah Beng (Mark Lee) and Ah Seng (Henry Thia), members of the rival Brothers Gang. They induct Liang Po Po into the gang, taking advantage of her naivete to make her run errands. When Big Boss (Cheng Yeow Nam) hires Hong Kong Triad members Wai-gor (Eric Tsang) and Mun-jie (Sheren Tang), they suggest a bank robbery. Liang Po Po is selected to commit the crime, and a large-scale confrontation with the police ensues.
Liang Po Po gets restless in an old folks’ home and feels that she can still contribute to society. She leaves the home. Along the way, she finds herself caught in a web of intrigue.
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The Noose
Which person who grew up or lived in Singapore during the early 2000s can forget the satirical series The Noose? In Singapore, where comedy concerning possibly sensitive current affairs is not widespread, the show, which parodies TV news programmes and pokes fun at Singapore stereotypes, quickly grew a following, with audiences becoming attached to its quirky, idiosyncratic recurring characters. Some of The Noose’s stars include Michelle Chong, Chua En Lai, Alaric Tay, Suhaimi Yusof, Judee Tan, and Siti Khalijah. Chong’s characters, including news anchor Adrianna Wow, KTV lounge hostess Lulu, and domestic helper Leticia Bongnino, have become especially popular.
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The Noose team, the most irreverent news team on the island, will be back!
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Wonder Boy
Singaporean singer-songwriter Dick Lee has left a lasting impact on the country’s culture in various ways, including penning the 1998 National Day theme song “Home”, composing musical theatre productions — including Beauty World, Fried Rice Paradise, Forbidden City, and The LKY Musical — and serving as a judge on Singapore Idol. The multi-hyphenate co-directs and co-writes this biopic, in which he is played by Benjamin Kheng. In the early ’70s, 16-year-old Richard ‘Dick’ Lee is an aspiring musician who doesn’t fit in at school. He forms a singing group called the Wonder Boys alongside Mark (Zachary Ibrahim), Sammy (Chen Xi), and Roy (Ryan Ang). The cast also includes Julie Tan as Linda, Dick’s love interest, and Constance Song and Gerald Chew as Dick’s parents Elizabeth and Kip respectively. On the movie’s soundtrack, Kheng performs covers of Lee’s songs from his debut album Life Story, including “Fried Rice Paradise”.
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Set in 1970s Singapore, Wonder Boy follows the story of Richard, a teenaged aspiring musician and the school's social outcast, as he forms a band - The Wonder Boys.
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